The present invention relates to garments for use in heating or cooling users who work in extreme temperature environments and more particularly to cooling vests containing ice sheets composed of refrigerant cubes.
Several different types of cooling garments have been developed and used in the past to cool the workers and alleviate heat stress. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,146,625 to Steele et al. discloses cooling vest comprising front and back panels having an open side and shoulder construction subject to closure using hook and loop construction fasteners that also serve to provide a non-integral construction which facilitates quick removal of the vest. The panels include pockets for receiving cooling gel packs that may be segmented into pouches. U.S. Pat. No. 4,033,354 to De Rosa describes an ice cooling garment comprising front and rear body panels attached over the shoulders and sides of a user. Matable hook and loop strip fasteners are used to secure sets of pockets containing sealed plastic bags filled with ice to the matching strips attached to the inside of the garment. The pockets may be removed from the garment and replaced when the ice in the bags is melted. U.S. Pat. No. 4,601,067 to Buonassissi discloses a vest structure having front and back panels including pockets in which water tight cool packs or hot packs may be inserted. U.S. Pat. No. 4,856,294 to Scaringe et al describes a micro-climate cooling vest having a chest enclosing portion and back portion featuring a double wall construction including an inner envelope or liner composed of adjacent chambers filled with special heat exchange material that undergoes a phase change from 60-90 degrees F. Ice packets may be sandwiched in between the heat exchange material and the outer layers of the vest to augment its cooling action.
However, these designs no not provide for the quick and convenient removal and replacement of cooling materials. Further, the cooling medium is not configured to provide a pleasing display or allow its ready inspection to determine whether or not it remains frozen and detect if the material has sustained any damage during use.